Pete Hamill
Hamill in 2007
Born	(1935-06-24) June 24, 1935 (age 77) Brooklyn, New York
Occupation	Writer
www.petehamill.com

Pete Hamill (born June 24, 1935) is an American journalist, novelist, essayist, editor and educator. Widely traveled and having written on a broad range of topics, he is perhaps best known for his career as a New York City journalist, as "the author of columns that sought to capture the particular flavors of New York City's politics and sports and the particular pathos of its crime."^[1] Hamill was a columnist and editor for the New York Post and The New York Daily News.

Biography[link]

The eldest of seven children of Catholic immigrants from Belfast, Northern Ireland, Pete Hamill was born in the Park Slope section of Brooklyn.^[2] His father, Billy Hamill, lost a leg as the result of an injury in a semi-pro soccer game in Brooklyn.^[3] Hamill’s mother, Anne Devlin, a high school graduate in Belfast, arrived in New York on the day the stock market crashed in 1929.^[4] Billy Hamill met Anne Devlin in 1933 and they married the following year.^[5] Billy Hamill had jobs as a grocery clerk, in a war plant, and later in a factory producing lighting fixtures. Anne Hamill was employed in Wanamaker's department store, and also worked as a domestic, a nurses' aide, and a cashier in the RKO movie chain.^[6]

Hamill attended Holy Name of Jesus grammar school^[7] and delivered the Brooklyn Daily Eagle when he was 11.^[8] In 1949, Hamill attended the prestigious Regis High School in Manhattan, but left school when he was 15 to work as an apprentice sheet metal worker in the Brooklyn Navy Yard; 59 years later, in June 2010, Regis awarded him an honorary diploma.^[9] Inspired especially by the work of Milton Caniff, he was set on becoming a comic book artist.^[10] Hamill attended night classes at the School of Visual Arts (then called the Cartoonists and Illustrators School),^[11] with the goal of becoming a painter.^[12] In the fall of 1952, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy. After his discharge, in 1956-57, he was a student at Mexico City College on the G.I. Bill.^[13] Hamill has also lived in Spain, Ireland, San Juan, Puerto Rico, Rome, Los Angeles, and Santa Fe, New Mexico.

A friend of Robert F. Kennedy, Hamill helped persuade the senator to run for the United States presidency, then worked for the campaign and covered it as a journalist. He was one of four men who disarmed Sirhan Sirhan of his gun in the aftermath of the Robert F. Kennedy assassination.^[14]

His brothers Denis and John Hamill are also writers. Denis writes for the New York Daily News.^[15] His other siblings are Joe (deceased), Brian, and Kathleen. Hamill has two daughters named Adriene and Deirdre.^[16] Hamill lives in New York City with his wife, the writer Fukiko Aoki.

Journalism[link]

Hamill began to work as a reporter for the New York Post in 1960.^[17] The 1962–63 New York City newspaper strike led Hamill to start writing magazine articles. By the fall of 1963 he was a correspondent for the Saturday Evening Post, stationed in Europe.^[18] Hamill spent six months in Barcelona and five months in Dublin, and traveled Europe interviewing actors, movie directors, and authors, as well as ordinary citizens. In August 1964 he returned to New York, reported on the Democratic Convention in Atlantic City, and was briefly employed as a feature writer at the New York Herald Tribune. He began writing a column for the New York Post in late 1965, and by the end of that year was reporting from Vietnam.^[19]

Over the course of nearly forty years Hamill worked at the Post, the New York Daily News, the Village Voice, and New York Newsday. He served briefly as editor of the Post, and later as editor-in-chief-of the Daily News. His resignation from the latter position after eight months prompted a letter of protest signed by more than a hundred of the paper’s writers.^[20] Hamill’s more extensive journalistic pieces have been published in New York, The New Yorker, Esquire, Playboy, Rolling Stone, and other periodicals. He has written about wars in Vietnam, Nicaragua, Lebanon and Northern Ireland,^[21] and reported on America’s urban riots of the 1960s. Hamill wrote about the New York underclass and racial division, most notably in an essay for Esquire magazine entitled Breaking the Silence.^[22] He also wrote about boxing, baseball, art, and contemporary music, winning a Grammy Award in 1975 for the liner notes to Bob Dylan's Blood on the Tracks.^[23]

Two collections of his selected journalism have been published: Irrational Ravings and Piecework (1996). For the Library of America he edited two volumes of the journalism of A.J. Liebling. In 1998, he published an extended essay on contemporary journalism titled News is a Verb: Journalism at the End of the Twentieth Century.

Fiction[link]

Hamill has also written fiction, producing ten novels and two collections of short stories. His first novel, a thriller called A Killing for Christ, about a plot to assassinate the Pope on Easter Sunday in Rome, was published in 1968. Drawing on his youth in Brooklyn he next wrote a semi-autobiographical novel called The Gift. Most of his fiction is set in New York City, including Snow in August (1997), Forever (2003), North River (2007), and Tabloid City (2011).

Hamill has published more than 100 short stories in newspapers, including those that were part of a series called The Eight Million in the New York Post; in the Daily News, his stories ran under the title Tales of New York. He has published two volumes of short stories: The Invisible City: A New York Sketchbook (1980) and Tokyo Sketches (1992).

Nonfiction[link]

Hamill's 1994 memoir, A Drinking Life, chronicled his journey from childhood into his thirties, his embrace of drinking and the decision to abandon it.^[24] According to Hamill, Frank McCourt was inspired by the book to complete his own memoir, Angela's Ashes.^[25] Hamill's memoir Downtown: My Manhattan includes his reporting for the New York Daily News on the destruction of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, at which he was present.^[26]

His book on the Mexican muralist Diego Rivera was inspired by time spent in Mexico City in 1957 and his presence at Rivera’s funeral.^[27] In Tools as Art (1995), Hamill surveys the Hechinger Collection and the incorporation of utilitarian objects for aesthetic ends. His biographical essay on the artist was featured in Underground Together: The Art and Life of Harvey Dinnerstein (2008), whose work, like Hamill’s, often focuses on the people and cultural life of Brooklyn.

Hamill’s interest in photography has informed recent essays in nonfiction. New York: City of Islands (2007), celebrates the photography of Jake Rajs. New York Exposed: Photographs from the Daily News (2001) contains an extended essay about the New York Daily News and its role in American photojournalism. In his introduction to Mexico: The Revolution and Beyond (2003), Hamill writes about Agustin Victor Casasola, whose photographs recorded the Revolution of 1910-1920. In his introduction to A Living Lens: Photographs of Jewish Life from the Pages of the Forward (2007), Hamill evokes the heyday of American Yiddish journalism. His text for The Times Square Gym (1996) enhances John Goodman's photographs of prizefighters, and his introduction to Garden of Dreams: Madison Square Garden (2004) offers a context for the sports photography of George Kalinski. Hamill’s Irish heritage informs the text for The Irish Face in America (2004), as seen by the photographer Jim Smith.

Hamill has also written about comic strips, of which he is a collector.^[28] Among his writings on the subject are an introduction to Terry and the Pirates: Volume Two by Milton Caniff (2007), and an introductory text for a revised version of Al Hirschfeld's The Speakeasies of 1932 (2003). He also contributed an introduction to Jerry Robinson: Ambassador of Comics (2010).

Honors[link]

Hamill received the Ernie Pyle Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Society of Newspaper Columnists in 2005. In 2010 Hamill received an Honorary Doctor of Letters Degree from St. John’s University.^[29][30] In 2010 he was presented the Louis Auchincloss Prize from the Museum of the City of New York.^[31]

Hamill is a Distinguished Writer in Residence at the Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute at New York University.^[32]

Bibliography[link]

• A Killing for Christ (1968)
• Irrational Ravings (1971, nonfiction)
• The Gift (1973)
• Dirty Laundry (1978)
• Flesh and Blood (1977)
• The Deadly Piece (1979)
• The Invisible City : Short Stories (1980, nonfiction)
• The Guns of Heaven (1984)
• Loving Women (1989)
• Tokyo Sketches : Short Stories (1992, nonfiction)
• A Drinking Life : A Memoir (1995, nonfiction)
• Piecework (1996, nonfiction)
• Snow in August (1998)
• News is a Verb (1998, nonfiction)
• Why Sinatra Matters(1999, nonfiction)
• Diego Rivera (1999, nonfiction)
• Forever (2003)
• Downtown : My Manhattan (2004, nonfiction)
• North River (2007)
• Tabloid City (2011)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• 1993 audio interview of Pete Hamill at Wired for Books.org by Don Swaim
• PBS interview with Hamill
• Review of Hamill's novel Forever
• "Pete Hamill Revisits The Newsroom In 'Tabloid City'", interview with Dave Davies of Fresh Air, May 5, 2011.
• Booknotes interview with Hamill on A Drinking Life: A Memoir, May 29, 1994.

Éric Ripert (rih-pair) (born 1965 in Antibes) is a French chef, author and television personality specializing in modern French cuisine and renowned for his work with seafood.^[1]

Ripert's flagship restaurant, Le Bernardin, located in New York City, has been ranked among the best restaurants in the world by culinary magazines and S. Pellegrino's annual "Worlds 50 Best Restaurants" list.^[2][3] It holds the maximum ratings of four stars from The New York Times and three stars from the Michelin Guide. ^[4]

Biography[link]

Eric Ripert was born in France and learned to cook at a young age from his grandmother. When he was young, his family moved to Andorra, where he was raised. He later returned to France and attended culinary school in Perpignan.

Culinary career[link]

At the age of 17 in 1982 he moved to Paris where he worked for two years at La Tour d'Argent, a famous restaurant more than 400 years old. Ripert next worked at Jamin under Joël Robuchon and was soon promoted to Assistant Chef de Partie. In 1985 Ripert left to fulfill his military service, after which he returned to Jamin as Chef Poissonier.

In 1989, Ripert moved to the United States and was hired as a sous chef in the Watergate Hotel's Jean Louis Palladin restaurant. He stayed for two years before moving to New York City in 1991 to work for David Bouley. He stayed just under a year so he didn't break contract by being pursued by Gilbert Le Coze at Le Bernardin. In 1994, Ripert became Le Bernardin's executive chef after Gilbert Le Coze died unexpectedly of a heart attack. The following year, at the age of 29, Ripert earned a four-star rating from the New York Times, and in 1996 he became a part-owner. In the Michelin Guide NYC 2006, Ripert's Le Bernardin was one of four New York City restaurants to be awarded the maximum 3 Michelin stars for excellence in cuisine. Le Bernardin received four stars from the New York Times four consecutive times, making it the only restaurant to maintain that exquisite status for that length of time and never dropping a star in ten years. Le Bernardin is often referred to as the Temple of Seafood.

Ripert chairs the City Harvest’s Food Council, and is president of the Jean-Louis Palladin Foundation. He has been a guest chef at the French Embassies in Mexico and Venezuela and for the New York City Ballet.

In November 2007, Ripert opened Westend Bistro at the Ritz-Carlton in Washington, D.C., offering casual French and American bistro fare. In early 2009, Westend Bistro began serving a family-style Sunday Supper of a starter and entree for $28 per person.^[5] Ripert opened his newest venture in the Ritz Carlton Philadelphia spring 2008. The name of the restaurant, 10 Arts (run by former Le Bernardin Sous Chef and now Chef de cuisine Jennifer Carroll, also a Top Chef contestant), comes from the hotel's address along Philadelphia's Avenue of the Arts.

Media career[link]

Ripert has made several guest appearances on cooking-based television shows, including guest judge and assistant chef roles on the second, third, fourth and fifth seasons of Bravo's "Top Chef". Chef Ripert had been considered to join season 8 of Top Chef as a permanent judge, but bowed out when his employee Jen Caroll was selected as a contestant again. He is friends with and has appeared on many episodes of Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations. Most recently he has launched a series of brief online cooking videos called "Get Toasted" on his website AVECERIC.com which focuses on easy and quick meals that can be prepared and cooked in minutes with a toaster oven. In the series he uses a somewhat high end brick-oven based toaster oven produced by Cuisinart. Adding to his adventures, PBS has aired Avec Eric episodes (started September 2009) where he travels the world and finds inspiration and shows the idea in a profession setting, travels on location, and then finally shows the enlightenment in his very own home kitchen. Chef Eric occasionally resides in Sag Harbor, Long Island, New York with his wife, Sondra and son.

Ripert was a featured chef on Great Chefs television.^[6]

In 2010 he played himself in the television show Treme on HBO (season 1 episode 5). He returned in his cameo role in Season 2, in multiple episodes.

Published works[link]

• Le Bernardin Cookbook (co-authored with Maguy Le Coze) (1998), ISBN 0-385-48841-6
• A Return to Cooking (co-authored with Michael Ruhlman) (2002), ISBN 1-57965-187-9
• On the Line: The Stations, the Heat, the Cooks, the Costs, the Chaos, and the Triumphs (co-authored with Christine Muhlke) (November 2008), ISBN 1-57965-369-3
• Avec Eric: A Culinary Journey with Eric Ripert (2010), ISBN 978-0-470-88935-0

Awards[link]

• "Best Restaurant in America" (1997) by GQ
• "Best Food in New York City" (2000–2007) by Zagat
• "Outstanding Restaurant of the Year" (1998) by the James Beard Foundation
• "Top Chef in New York City" (1998) by the James Beard Foundation
• "Outstanding Service Award" (1999) by the James Beard Foundation
• "Outstanding Chef of the Year" (2003) by the James Beard Foundation
• Gayot Top 40 Restaurants in the US: 2008, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004

Philanthropic activity[link]

Ripert is the chair of City Harvest’s Food Council. In this capacity he works to bring together New York’s top chefs, restaurateurs and others in the food community to assist City Harvest in its mission to raise funds and to increase the quantity and quality of food donations. "City Harvest, a non-profit organization founded in 1982, is the world's first and New York City's only food rescue program. City Harvest exists to end hunger in communities throughout New York City, through food rescue and distribution, education, and other practical, innovative solutions."

He is president of the Jean-Louis Palladin Foundation which develops programs to increase the understanding and appreciation of high quality ingredients among young chefs and food professionals.

For three years, Ripert has hosted the Tibetan Aid Project's Taste & Tribute New York benefit dinner and auction at his Manhattan restaurant, Le Bernardin. "Funds raised at the annual Taste & Tribute benefit dinners help support efforts to restore Tibetan-language texts to libraries all over the Himalayan region. So far, this project has led to the distribution of nearly two million traditional Buddhist texts—one of the largest free book distributions in history. ^[7]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Profile at Great Chefs
• Personal Blog
• Biography at CuisineNet
• in depth video interview w/ Eric
• Biography at Global Gourmet
• iVillage's Secret Sauce: Eric Ripert's Warm Peekytoe-Maryland Lump "Crab Cake"
• iVillage's Secret Sauce: Eric Ripert's Grilled Trout with Sauce Vierge and Potato and Leek"
• Westend Bistro, Washington, DC
• Chef’s Table: Drinking with Eric Ripert

Armstrong Williams (born February 5, 1959) is an African American political commentator, author of a conservative newspaper column, and host of a daily radio show and a nationally syndicated TV program, called The Right Side with Armstrong Williams. From 2004 to 2007, he co-hosted a daily radio program with Sam Greenfield, broadcast on WWRL in New York City.^{[citation needed]}

Personal[link]

A native of Marion, South Carolina, Williams was reared on the family’s tobacco farm with nine other siblings. He displayed an early gift for public speaking, winning a high school orating contest in 1976.^{[citation needed]} Graduating in 1981 from South Carolina State University, he received his B.A. in Political Science and English. He is a life member of Phi Beta Sigma fraternity.

Williams, who has never married, often mentions his celibacy.^[1][2]

In 1997, Williams was sued for sexual harassment by Stephen Gregory, a former YMCA personal trainer whom Williams repeatedly promoted, eventually to executive producer of his show The Right Side.^[3][4][5] The case was settled out of court.^[6] In his book Blinded by the Right, journalist David Brock claimed that Williams made a pass at him in Williams' apartment.^[6]

Career[link]

An entrepreneur and third-generation Republican, Armstrong Williams was formerly vice president for governmental and international affairs public relations firm, B&C Associations. He also served as confidential assistant to the Chairman of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas), presidential appointee to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, legislative assistant to the U.S. Representative Carroll Campbell (former governor of South Carolina) and legislative aide and advisor to U.S. Senator Strom Thurmond.

In 1991, Williams began his radio career at WOL in Washington, D.C.. Four years later, in 1995, Williams' local show was syndicated by The Talk America Radio Network. In 1998, Williams united with The Salem Radio Network, which syndicated his national radio show to 26 of the top radio markets in the country. In 2002, he reunited with the Newark, New Jersey-based Talk America Radio Network.

From 2002 to 2005 Williams hosted On Point with Armstrong Williams, a monthly primetime television special that aired on cable network TV One. A joint venture among Comcast, Radio One, and Right Side Production, On Point with Armstrong Williams included guests such as former Vice President Dick Cheney, former Secretary of State Colin Powell and former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

In 2003 he launched his own company, The Right Side Productions, which produces and syndicates his television program to media outlets including Sky Angel, The Liberty Channel, etc. jointly with Langer Broadcast Radio Network.^[7]

In 2004, Williams was appointed by President George W. Bush to the President’s Commission on White House Fellows. The Commission's responsibility is to select qualified candidates to serve as Fellows to Cabinet-rank offices.^{[citation needed]} Past fellows have included Cheney, Powell and Labor Secretary Elaine Chao. Williams has appeared on CNN, MSNBC, and NPR as a guest commentator. He joined the lineup at WWRL's "New York's Urban Talk" in March 2005 as co-host with Sam Greenfield on Drive Time Dialogue.^{[citation needed]}

In 2008, Williams began hosting a conservative talk show on XM Satellite Radio.

Williams is a National Board member of the Carson Scholars Fund, a 501 (c) (3) non-profit charity that was founded in 1994 by Johns Hopkins Pediatric Neurosurgeon Dr. Benjamin Carson to recognize and reward students in grades 4-11 who strive for academic excellence (3.75 GPA or higher) and demonstrate a strong commitment to their community.^{[citation needed]}

"No Child Left Behind" controversy[link]

In January 2005, USA Today reported that documents obtained under the Freedom of Information Act revealed that Williams had been paid $240,000 to promote the controversial No Child Left Behind Act. USA Today claimed Williams was hired "to promote the law on his nationally syndicated television show and to urge other black journalists to do the same".^[8]

As part of the agreement, Williams was required "to regularly comment on NCLB during the course of his broadcasts," and to interview Education Secretary Rod Paige for TV and radio spots that aired during the show in 2004".^[9] The contract with Williams was part of a $1 million contract between the U.S. Department of Education and the public relations company, Ketchum Inc.

Melanie Sloan from Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington told USA Today that the contract may be illegal "because Congress has prohibited propaganda ... [A]nd it's propaganda". United States Representative George Miller (D-CA), a member of the House Education Committee, called the contract "a very questionable use of taxpayers' money" that is "probably illegal".^[10]

After the USA Today revelations, Tribune Media Services terminated its syndication agreement with Williams. In a statement to Editor & Publisher (not available on its website), TMS stated: "[A]ccepting compensation in any form from an entity that serves as a subject of his weekly newspaper columns creates, at the very least, the appearance of a conflict of interest. Under these circumstances, readers may well ask themselves if the views expressed in his columns are his own, or whether they have been purchased by a third party".^[11] Williams told the Associated Press "even though I'm not a journalist — I'm a commentator — I feel I should be held to the media ethics standard. My judgment was not the best. I wouldn't do it again, and I learned from it."^[12]

White House press secretary Scott McClellan said it was a matter for the Education Department. According to Associated Press the Department of Education stated that the deal was a "permissible use of taxpayer funds under legal government contracting procedures".^[12] McClellan remained noncommittal on whether White House staff knew of the deal with Williams. "I'm not sure that senior staff was consulted before this decision was made. I haven't heard anything to that effect", he said.^[13] Three days after the story broke, McClellan claimed he was unaware of the details of the contract and that specific questions should be directed to the Education Department. As to whether Williams should have disclosed the details of the contract in his columns and on-air appearances, McClellan would only concede that "those are all legitimate questions". Asked whether he would investigate whether other journalists were on the payroll of the administration, McClellan replied, "I'm not aware of any others that are under contract other than the one that's been reported on in the media."^{[citation needed]}

Following the revelations of the Williams contract with Ketchum, the watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington announced that it had filed Freedom of Information requests with 22 agencies requesting copies of all contracts with public relation firms.^[14]

The USA Today revelations caused controversy within the PR industry as well. As soon as the story broke, Edelman Public Relations' CEO Richard Edelman posted a note on his personal blog criticizing Ketchum's deal with Williams. "This kind of pay for play public relations takes us back in time to the days of the press agent who would drop off the new record album and $10 to the deejay. It makes our industry's efforts to 'clean up' behavior in newly created PR markets such as China and Russia look decidedly ridiculous", he wrote.^[15] The Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) issued a statement saying "the relationship should have been disclosed up front, no question".^[16]

On September 30, 2005, the Government Accountability Office released a report concluding that the payments to Williams were illegal on the part of the Department of Education because the government's role in the public relations effort was not disclosed.^[17]

Other business interests[link]

Williams is also the CEO of the Graham Williams Group, which is described as an "international public relations firm with clients in entertainment, politics, business and charitable organizations". ^[18]

See also[link]

• Bush administration payment of columnists

Books by Williams[link]

• Armstrong Williams, Letters to a young victim: Hope and Healing in America's Inner Cities, Scribner Paper Fiction, October 1996. ISBN 0-684-82466-3
• Armstrong Williams, Beyond Blame: How We Can Succeed by Breaking the Dependency Barrier, Free Press, May 1995. ISBN 0-02-935365-3

References[link]

External links[link]

• Williams's website
• Booknotes interview with Williams on Beyond Blame, July 16, 1995.

This article uses content from the SourceWatch article on Armstrong Williams under the terms of the GFDL.

Trey Parker
Parker at The Amazing Meeting, January 20, 2007
Born	Randolph Severn Parker III (1969-10-19) October 19, 1969 (age 42) Denver, Colorado, U.S.
Occupation	Actor, writer, director, producer, musician
Spouse	Emma Sugiyama (2005–2008)[1]

Trey Parker (born Randolph Severn Parker III; October 19, 1969) is an American actor, voice artist, animator, screenwriter, director, producer and musician, best known for being the co-creator of South Park along with his creative partner and best friend Matt Stone.

Parker started his film career in 1992, making a holiday short titled Jesus vs. Frosty. His first success came from Cannibal! The Musical. From there he made another short titled Jesus vs. Santa, which led him and college friend Stone to create South Park, which began airing on television in 1997. He has won four Emmy Awards for his role in South Park, winning for both "Outstanding Programming More Than One Hour" and "Outstanding Programming Less Than One Hour".

He co-wrote and co-directed the 2011 multi-Tony Award winning musical The Book of Mormon.

Early life[link]

Parker was born in Denver, Colorado, the son of Randy (a geologist) and Sharon (an insurance broker). The two share the first names and occupations of South Park characters Randy and Sharon Marsh.^[2] He has an older sister named Shelley, which is also the name of Stan Marsh's older sister. In the sixth grade, Parker wrote a sketch titled The Dentist and appeared in his school's talent show. He played the dentist and had a friend play the patient. The plot involved what can go wrong at the dentist; due to the amounts of fake blood involved, Parker's parents were called and were upset. "The kindergartners were all crying and freaking out," Parker recalled.^[3] As a teenager, Parker developed a love for musical theatre, and joined the Evergreen Players, a venerable mountain community theater outside of Denver. At 14, he performed his first role as chorus member in The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Flower Drum Song and went on to also design sets for the community theater's production of Little Shop of Horrors. Parker attended high school at Evergreen High, where he continued his musical endeavors through starring as Danny Zuko in Grease. He also played piano for the chorus and was president of the choir counsel.^[4][5]

Parker worked hard in school and had a part-time student job in a pizza restaurant. Parker was also a "film geek and music buff".^[6] Parker grew up in the Conifer, Colorado area, and attended Berklee College of Music before transferring to the University of Colorado, where he majored in music and Japanese.^{[citation needed]}

Career[link]

In 1992, Parker and Stone created Jesus vs. Frosty.^[7] It included four boys, Stan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Kenny McCormick and Eric Cartman. Both Jesus vs. Frosty and Cannibal! The Musical were made while they were students at the University of Colorado film school, studying under both Stan Brakhage and Jerry Aronson. Afterwards, the two friends set off for Hollywood in hopes of making more movies. Brian Graden, then an executive at Fox, put Parker to work making a pilot for a musical children's television series called Time Warped. The pilot, called "Rom and Jul," was a love story about a Homo erectus and an Australopithecus. Fox passed on the series, but Graden paid Parker and Stone $1,200 to make a new version of The Spirit of Christmas he could send out as a video Christmas card.^[3]

They came up with two worthwhile ideas; one a sequel to Jesus vs. Frosty, titled Jesus vs. Santa, and one about a character that would later be recurring in South Park, Mr. Hankey.^[8] They chose to write about the four boys. The result was The Spirit of Christmas, an animated short film that centered on four crude-acting, blob-shaped third-grade boys forced to intervene in a nasty fistfight between Jesus Christ and Santa Claus. The tape was a smash, passed around and copied endlessly in media circles in Los Angeles and New York City.^[9] The video landed in the hands of Doug Herzog of Comedy Central. "It literally was the funniest thing I'd ever seen," he said in a 2006 interview. "We said, 'Develop a show.' So they went off and developed the show."^[3] Stone and Parker produced 13 episodes for season 1. South Park is currently still under contract to produce new episodes through 2016.^[10]

In 1997, they also released Orgazmo, a movie rated NC-17. In 1998, they starred in (but did not write or direct) BASEketball, another feature film, while being renewed for a second season of South Park. In 1999, Parker and Stone made South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut, which gave the series a new level of prominence.^[11] He was nominated for an Academy Award as the co-writer of one of the film's songs, "Blame Canada," but did not win. In 2001, the duo announced they would do 39 shorts between the lengths of 2 and 5 minutes. Although originally thought to be South Park related, they decided they would do something different. The result was the shorts Princess.^[12] The content was so extreme that it was cancelled after two shows aired. In 2001, they also created That's My Bush!, another television series. Despite great reviews, the show was cancelled after one season for the cost per episode. In 2004, they made a film, titled Team America: World Police.^[13][14] The film was not considered a box-office success, grossing 51 million dollars in theaters, despite largely positive reviews (78% fresh rating on RottenTomatoes.com).^[15] As of 2011, South Park is in its fifteenth season.

Parker is also a member of the band DVDA with Stone, for which he plays keyboards and sings. DVDA's songs have appeared in many of the duo's productions. They include Orgazmo, BASEketball, South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut, and Team America: World Police.^{[16][17][18][19]}

Trey claimed to have been on acid with Matt Stone at the time of the 2000 Academy Awards, where they wore dresses popularized by Jennifer Lopez and Gwyneth Paltrow at previous awards shows.^[20]

On September 28, 2007, Parker and Stone acquired the rights to the Canadian-made Kenny vs. Spenny, which premiered November 14, 2007 on Comedy Central with ten old and new episodes.^[21]

In April 2010, Trey Parker and Matt Stone received a "warning" for allegedly representing the Prophet Muhammad in a bear costume: "We have to warn Matt and Trey [South Park creators] that what they are doing is stupid and they will probably wind up like Theo van Gogh for airing this show."^[22] It was revealed in the next episode that the person in the bear costume was really Santa Claus and not the Prophet Muhammad.

Theater productions[link]

Parker and Stone have collaborated with Avenue Q composer Robert Lopez on a musical about Mormons; it is titled The Book of Mormon, and stars Andrew Rannells and Josh Gad.^[23] It has been produced by Scott Rudin and Anne Garefino. It opened at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre on March 24, 2011, following previews from February 24, 2011.^[24] The Book of Mormon won nine Tony Awards in 2011, including that of Best Direction of a Musical for Parker and co-director Casey Nicholaw.

[edit] Voices on South Park

Personal life[link]

In 2006, Parker married Emma Sugiyama. The officiant was 1970s sitcom producer Norman Lear.^[1][25] That marriage ended, and Parker is now living with a woman and her son.^[25][26]

On a September 2006 airing of the ABC news program Nightline, Parker articulated his position on religion. He stated that he believes there is knowledge that humanity may not yet possess, and cautioned that it would take a long time to explain exactly what he meant by his belief in God. Parker believes all religions are silly. He states that "All the religions are superfunny to me......The story of Jesus makes no sense to me. God sent his only son. Why could God only have one son and why would he have to die? It's just bad writing, really. And it's really terrible in about the second act."^[27] Parker further remarked, "Basically ... out of all the ridiculous religion stories which are greatly, wonderfully ridiculous — the silliest one I've ever heard is, 'Yeah ... there's this big giant universe and it's expanding, it's all gonna collapse on itself and we're all just here just 'cause ... just 'cause'. That, to me, is the most ridiculous explanation ever."^[28]

Discography[link]

• Baseketball (soundtrack) (1998)
• Orgazmo (soundtrack) (1998)
• Chef Aid: The South Park Album (1998)
• South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut (soundtrack) (1999)
• Mr. Hankey's Christmas Classics (1999)
• Team America: World Police (soundtrack) (2005)

Filmography[link]

Awards and Nominations[link]

This section requires expansion.

Tony Awards[link]

Trey Parker has won four Tony Awards.^[29]

• 2011 – Best Musical for The Book of Mormon
• 2011 – Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical for The Book of Mormon
• 2011 – Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical for The Book of Mormon
• 2011 – Tony Award for Best Original Score for The Book of Mormon

Emmy Awards[link]

Parker has been nominated for ten Emmy Awards for South Park, winning four.

• 2009 – Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program (for Programming Less Than One Hour) for "Margaritaville"
• 2008 – Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program (for Programming One Hour or More) for "Imaginationland"
• 2007 – Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program (for Programming Less Than One Hour) for "Make Love, Not Warcraft"
• 2005 – Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program (for Programming Less Than One Hour) for "Best Friends Forever"

Grammy Awards[link]

Parker has won one Grammy Award.

• 2011 - Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album for "The Book of Mormon: Original Cast Recording"^[30]

Academy Awards[link]

Parker has been nominated for one Academy Award.

• 1999 - Academy Award for Best Original Song for "Blame Canada" from "South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut"^[31]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Trey Parker at the Internet Movie Database

Matt Stone
Stone at The Amazing Meeting in 2007
Born	Matthew Richard Stone (1971-05-26) May 26, 1971 (age 41) Houston, Texas, U.S.
Occupation	Actor, writer, television director, television producer
Years active	1992–present
Religion	None (Atheist)[1][2]

Matthew Richard "Matt" Stone (born May 26, 1971) is an American actor, voice actor, animator, screenwriter, producer, musician, best known for being the co-creator of South Park along with his creative partner and best friend, Trey Parker.

Stone and Parker launched their largely collaborative careers in 1992, making a holiday short titled Jesus vs. Frosty. Their first success came from Alferd Packer: The Musical, subsequently distributed as Cannibal! The Musical. From there he made another short title Jesus vs. Santa, leading him and college friend Parker to create South Park, which has been airing for over fifteen years. He has four Emmy Awards for his role in South Park, winning for both "Outstanding Programming More Than One Hour" and "Outstanding Programming Less Than One Hour".

Early life[link]

Stone was born in Houston, Texas to Gerald Whitney Stone, Jr. (1941-2010), an economics professor and textbook author, and Sheila Lois Belasco (who share the first names of South Park character Kyle Broflovski's parents). Stone's mother is Jewish and his father was of Irish descent.^[3] Stone and his younger sister, Rachel were raised in Littleton, Colorado, a suburb of Denver, Colorado, where both attended Heritage High School. He graduated from the University of Colorado at Boulder, and was their first student to double major in film and mathematics.^[4]

Career[link]

Stone (right) with Trey Parker, January 20, 2007

South Park[link]

In 1992, Stone and Parker created Jesus vs. Frosty.^[5] It included four boys, two resembling Stan Marsh and Kyle Broflovski, one called Kenny who looked like Cartman, and a fourth unnamed boy who looked like Kenny. Both Jesus and Cannibal! The Musical were made while they were students at the University of Colorado film school, studying under both Stan Brakhage and Jerry Aronson. After the duo released Cannibal! The Musical, they were asked to make another animated short.^[6][7] They came down to two ideas: one a sequel to Jesus vs. Frosty, and one about a character that would later be recurring in South Park, Mr. Hankey.^[8] They chose to write about the four boys, and their decision ultimately opened the door for them to present a show (South Park) to Comedy Central.^[9] Stone and Parker produced 13 episodes for season 1.^[10] In 1999, Stone and Parker made South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut, which gave the series prominence.^[11] The film's music was nominated for an Academy Award, but lost to "You'll Be In My Heart" from Tarzan.^[12]

Other projects[link]

In 1997, they also released Orgazmo, a movie rated NC-17. In 1998, they starred in (but did not write or direct) BASEketball, another feature film, while being renewed for a second season of South Park. In 2001, the duo announced they would do 39 shorts between the lengths of 2 and 5 minutes.^[13] Although originally thought to be South Park-related, they decided they would do something different. The result was the shorts 'Princess'.^[14] The content was so extreme that it was cancelled after two shows aired.^[15] In 2001, they also created That's My Bush!, another television series. Despite great reviews, the show was cancelled after one season for its cost, reportedly $700,000 per episode.^[16]

In 2004, they made a film titled Team America: World Police^[17][18] which many critics reviewed positively.^[19] In August 2007, South Park was renewed for three more seasons, 13, 14 and 15, each of them containing 14 episodes.^[20]

Stone is also a member of the band DVDA with Parker, for which he plays bass and drums. DVDA's songs have appeared in many of the duo's productions, including Orgazmo, BASEketball, South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut, and Team America: World Police.^{[21][22][23][24]}

On September 28, 2007, Parker and Stone acquired the US rights to the Canadian-made Kenny vs. Spenny, which premiered November 14, 2007 on Comedy Central with ten old and new episodes.^[25]

Stone and Parker collaborated with Avenue Q composer Robert Lopez on a musical about Mormons titled The Book of Mormon, which stars Andrew Rannells, Josh Gad, Nikki M. James and Rory O'Malley. It opened at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre on March 24, 2011, and is being produced by Scott Rudin and Anne Garefino. It is directed by Parker and Casey Nicholaw, and choreographed by Nicholaw.^[26]

In April 2010, Stone and Parker received a "warning" for allegedly representing the Muslim prophet Muhammad in a bear costume: "We have to warn Matt and Trey that what they are doing is stupid and they will probably wind up like Dutch director Theo van Gogh for airing this show."^[27] It was revealed in the next episode that the person in the bear costume was actually Santa Claus and not Muhammad; the "real" Muhammad was supposed to appear as well, but Comedy Central had him censored out against Stone and Parker's wishes.

Stone claimed that he and Parker were on acid at the time of the 72nd Academy Awards in 2000, where they wore dresses popularized by Jennifer Lopez and Gwyneth Paltrow at previous awards shows.^[28]

Personal life[link]

In 2008, Stone married Angela Howard. He has one son.^[29][30]

Regarding religion, Stone considers himself "ethnically Jewish", on account of his mother's descent, but grew up agnostic, and has no other adherence to the religion,^[3][30][31] identifying himself as an atheist.^[1][2]

Filmography[link]

[edit] Voices on South Park

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Matt Stone (category)

• Matt Stone and Trey Parker at the Official South Park Website
• Matt Stone at the Internet Movie Database
• Fresh Air Interview